READING THE GAME: Hockey Sense Emerges Through the Four Roles (5:8)

By Coach Barry Jones IIHF Level 3 High Performance | USA Hockey Level 3 Performance | Head Coach Perth Inferno AWIHL

Hockey IQ Emerges Through the Four Roles

Why intelligence depends on who you are in the moment, not where you line up

Hockey IQ is often talked about as a personal trait. Something a player either has or doesn’t.

In reality, Hockey IQ is role dependent. It changes with the moment, the task, and what the game is asking of you right now.

Hockey Is Played Through Roles, Not Positions

Positions organise the bench. Roles organise behaviour.

At any moment in the game, every player is operating inside one of four roles: offense with the puck, offense supporting, defense on the puck, and defense away from the puck.

Hockey IQ is the ability to recognise your role quickly and act appropriately within it.

Each Role Carries Different Information

Each role presents different information and different problems to solve.

Offense with the puck focuses on time creation, deception, and puck protection. Offense supporting focuses on spacing, timing, and availability. Defense on the puck focuses on time denial and angle control. Defense away from the puck focuses on reading threats and closing space early.

Hockey IQ Collapses When Roles Are Blurred

When players misread their role, decision making slows and time collapses.

This is not an effort issue. It is a perception issue.

Clear roles simplify perception. Clear perception stabilises action.

Role Clarity Expands Affordances

Affordances are role specific.

When players understand their role, they see opportunities earlier, discard irrelevant information, and act with greater confidence.

Strengths Express Differently Across Roles

A player’s strengths reappear differently across roles.

Speed, strength, and skill do not disappear when roles change. They express themselves in new ways depending on the task.

Why Role Awareness Is Rarely Trained

Many training environments focus on isolated skills or fixed positions.

Without frequent role switching and clear role cues, perception narrows and Hockey IQ stagnates.

Developing Hockey IQ Through Role Fluidity

Hockey IQ develops when players repeatedly identify roles, adjust behaviour, and transition smoothly between them.

This builds functional adaptability, not scripted execution.

The Coach’s Responsibility

The coach’s role is to reveal roles through environment design, not control them through instruction.

When roles are clear, players organise themselves.

Where We’re Going Next

The next article explores sampling, weaknesses, and how limitations become affordances through repeated exposure to meaningful problems.

Author Bio: Barry Jones is an IIHF Level 3 High Performance Coach and USA Hockey Level 3 Performance Coach. He currently serves as Head Coach of the Perth Inferno (AWIHL) and leads the Blaze Development Program. His work blends ecological dynamics, nonlinear design, and athlete-centred leadership to build adaptive teams that thrive in uncertainty.

Time · Pressure · Perception · Options · Action. Hockey IQ